The Investigation Begins

Days later, Charles officially became Chantelle’s personal physician.

Under the guise of “ensuring her health after such a long coma,” he conducted routine examinations. In reality, however, their work was far from ordinary.

And what they discovered?

It was magic.

Some kind of spell had forced her into a coma—one strong enough to keep her unconscious for three years without harming her body.

Chantelle sat frozen, staring at Charles as he dramatically flipped through pages of an old medical text, looking far too pleased with himself.

“This is ridiculous,” she muttered, rubbing her temples. “Magic? What’s next? Was I cursed by a vengeful frog?”

Charles smirked. “Possibly. Perhaps you offended an amphibian sorcerer in your past life.”

She shot him a glare. “Be serious.”

“Oh, I am,” he said, entirely too amused. “There was a case decades ago where a noblewoman was cursed after accidentally stepping on a wizard’s pet chicken. Very tragic.”

Chantelle pinched the bridge of her nose. “I refuse to believe my fate was dictated by poultry-related vengeance.”

“Well, then,” Charles leaned back in his chair, tapping his chin, “we’re left with a more concerning possibility.”

Chantelle exhaled, preparing for whatever nonsense was about to come out of his mouth. “Which is?”

Charles suddenly leaned forward, his golden eyes glinting. “Someone wanted you in that coma.”

Silence.

She stared at him. He stared back.

Then, with the slow realization sinking in, Chantelle groaned, dramatically slumping over the desk.

“I was hoping you’d say it was the chicken.”

The Great Library Expedition

Chantelle sighed as she sat in the middle of her grand, newly built library—all one hectare of it.

Rows upon rows of books towered around her, stretching so far she was sure if she walked too deep inside, she’d get lost and be declared missing.

“This is ridiculous,” she muttered, flipping through another old text. “Do you know how many books I’ve read today?”

Mira, her loyal maid, stood beside her with a tired expression. “Seventeen.”

“And how many have actually helped?”

Mira sighed. “None.”

Chantelle slammed the book shut dramatically. “At this rate, I’ll have read the entire library before I find—”

Her words trailed off as she noticed something odd about one of the shelves.

A single, dust-covered book jutted out ever so slightly.

Curious, she pulled it free.

"The Forgotten Art of Curses and Eternal Slumber."

Her heart pounded.

"Finally!" She stood up so fast that Mira had to step back to avoid getting whacked by flying pages.

But after hours of reading, Chantelle realized one thing—she needed to leave the mansion.

There were no answers here, only theories. If she wanted the truth, she had to find someone who actually knew about this magic.

The Adventure Begins

Thus began The Most Unexpected Adventure of Chantelle Dupont.

With Charles—because he was the only one remotely knowledgeable about strange curses.

And her brother—because there was no way in any kingdom he’d let her go alone with Charles.

From the moment they set out, the trip became less of an adventure and more of a battle of egos.

“You are NOT leading this expedition, Carter,” her brother, Damien, snapped.

Charles grinned. “And what exactly qualifies you to lead? Your extensive experience reading war reports while drinking tea?”

Damien scoffed. “At least I don’t attempt to diagnose people with ‘mystical poultry curses.’”

“That was a theory, not a diagnosis.”

Chantelle sighed, massaging her temples. “Can you two stop fighting for five minutes?”

Silence.

Five seconds later, Charles pointed at Damien. “He started it.”

“I swear,” Damien muttered, gripping the reins of his horse, “if we weren’t on a quest, I’d challenge you to a duel right now.”

Chantelle groaned. This was going to be a very long journey.

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